Improvement in hoop-skirts



NITED STATES ATENT OFFICE.

SAMUEL S. SHERWOOD, OF AOQUACKANONOK, ASSIGN OR TO HIMSELE AND ALEXANDER DOUGLAS, OF ENGLISH NEIGHBORHOOD, NEW JERSEY.

IMPROVEMENT IN HOOP-SKIRTS.

Spec'ilieation formingr part of Letters Patent No. 40,935, dated December 15, 1863.

To all whom it may concern.- y

Be it known that I, SAMUEL S. SHERwooD, of Acquackanonck, in the county of Passaic and State of New Jersey, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Hoop- Skirts; and I do hereby declare the following to be a full, clear, and eXact description thereof, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, and to the letters of reference marked thereon, forming a part of this specification.

In the drawings, Figure l is a front eleva` tion of said hoop-skirt. Fig. 2 is an elevation in detail of the external parts of said hoopskirt, showing how the braids are secured to the hoops. Fig. 3 is an interior elevation in detail or back viewot' Fig. 2. Fig. 4 is aview in detail of the parts of the hoop-skirt, showing` the braids' placed crosswise of the longitudinal tapes and fastened to the hoops. Fig. 5 is a view showing the manner of tying the braids to the hoops. Fig. 6 shows another method of tying or securing the braids to the hoops and keeping the tape in place.

My improvement consists in constructing a hoop-skirt the hoops and longitudinal tapes of which are kept in their propel' position by a cord or braid attached to the hoop on ei; her side of the tapes and tied or secured ina manner more fully hereinafter to be described, said braids being tied or sewed, in a manner to be hereinafter shown, at the lower end of the longitudinal tapes to the bottom hoop, then to the next hoop above, and so on consecutively until the last hoop that cireumscribes the skirt is reached, where one of the braids is fastened to a strengthening piece or strip l which forms the top or part ofthe top opening of the skirt, while the other braid on the other side of the tape continues on until it reaches the top or belt of the skirt, where it also is fastened. In this manner and by this construction I am enabled rapidly to make a hoop-skirt that will be at once neat,lcheap, and durable.

A A are longitudinal tapes running up the skirt.

B Barestrips orstrengthening-pieces which are sewed to the tapes A A and secured to the belt or waistband C. The space between these two strengthening pieces or strips form part of the opening of ingress and egress. The apes A A are woven with a loop, G, through which the hoops E E pass. These loops keep the horizontal hoops EE equidistant from each other, and at the same time form part of the support of the skirt.

F F are cords or braids which connect and are fastened to the hoops E E by means of a knot, the formation of which will be sufciently apparent upon inspecting the drawings, Fig. 5.

Instead of tying the braids F F to the hoops E E by a knot, as shown, I sometimes sew the braids through themselves, so as to form a loop or stitch over the hoops, as in Fig. 6. By this latter method it will be seen that great rapidity in manufacturing the skirt is acquired, and the skirt is almost if not quite as substantial. After the hoops have been iutroduced through the loops G G the braids F F are knotted to or sewed over (see-Fig. 6)

'each hoop on both sides of the tapesAA.

At the point C O, where the strengtheningpieces B B are joined or sewed to the tapes A A, the ends of the braids or cords E F are fastened, while on the outside of the tapes the braids extend up to the waistband or belt O, the said braids going through the said strengthching-pieces, and sewing them, as it were, to the ends of the hoops, which there terminate, so as to allow an opening for the wearer to put thc skirt on. The braids are fastened to the bottom hoop and their projecting ends stitched or tied to the tapes A A.

I am aware that the form and adaptation of the braids F F may be somewhat varied--as in Fig. 4, for example. The said cords or braids are attached in the same manner to the hoops E E, but simply cross diagonally that portion of the tape included between the hoops E E.

Having thus fully described my said invention, what I claim, and desire to secure by .Letters Patent of the United States, is

The combination ,with the tapes A A,woven with loops or their equivalents, and the hoops E E, of the cords or braids F F, when the latter are secured outside of the tapes and not th rough them, substantially as and for the purposes set forth.

SAML. S. SHERVVOOD.

Witnesses:

Giras. E. Home, L. A. ROBERTS. 

